Cherished

  “Lark?” I asked.

  “He’s headed toward Austin.”

  “Wait. How do you know that?” Azurdee asked.

  “It’s part of my job to be able to find people,” Lark said in a quiet voice.

  “Oh,” was all Azurdee said as she sat back in her seat.

  I tried to calm my beating heart. Dear Lord, please…I’ll do anything you want. Please don’t let him hurt or take her from me.

  “What else did Josh say, Scott?” Lark asked, snapping me out of my prayer.

  “He told me the girl at the front desk said that she had noticed Jessie sitting there with Trey. She told Josh the only reason she was watching was because she had liked Trey, and he had taken her out a few times, so she was a bit jealous to see him talking to another girl. She heard Jessie telling Trey to stop this before he regretted doing it. She had a line of people checking in, but when she glanced up, she saw Trey had Jessie by the arm, and he was quickly guiding her out of the hotel. She said Jessie looked scared, but the girl didn’t think anything of it at the time.”

  Lark slowly looked at me. “If you called the cops, we can’t prove that she’s been kidnapped.”

  “Kidnapped!” Azurdee called out from the backseat.

  “We can’t prove it unless the front desk girl saw something else. See if they have a security camera and if they will let Josh see it.”

  I called Josh back. “Josh, is there any way you can ask to see if they have a surveillance video of Trey and Jessie leaving? Buddy, you are awesome. Call me back as soon as you can.”

  I looked at Lark. “Josh had his mother come up to the hotel and start talking legal bullshit. They are both about to watch the video now.”

  “Oh god. Oh my god. What if he…the baby…” Azurdee said.

  I hadn’t even thought of the baby up to this point. “I’ll fucking kill him,” I whispered.

  My cell phone rang, and I answered to hear Josh saying something to his mother.

  “Josh? What’s going on?” I asked.

  “He had a gun. He had a gun pointed at her side the whole time they walked out of the hotel. Mom is on the phone with the Austin police department right now. You said they were heading to Austin, right?”

  I couldn’t talk. My whole world flashed in front of my eyes—Jessie at our wedding and giving birth to our child and sitting on the back porch together in our rocking chairs. She’s my whole world.

  “Scott? Scott? Scott!”

  I heard Josh, but I couldn’t answer him.

  The next thing I knew, Lark took my phone and started talking to Josh. Everything went quiet, and all I could see was Jessie when she had woken up this morning and leaned over to rest her chin on my chest.

  “Sometimes, I think I’m dreaming,” I whispered as Jessie looked into my eyes.

  The smile that spread across her face caused my stomach to drop just a bit.

  “Same here. I can’t believe how happy I am. The wedding, the baby—everything is just falling into place for us…finally!” she said with a laugh.

  I ran my hand through her hair, and every now and then, she would let out a soft moan that moved through my whole body.

  “Do you want a boy or a girl?” I asked her.

  “I want a girl. I mean, a healthy baby would be perfect, boy or girl, but…I would love a little girl. What about you?”

  I sat there for a minute or two and thought about it. “A boy would be pretty cool. I could teach him about hunting, riding, the business, how to smile at a girl and melt her panties,” I said, laughing as Jessie hit me in the side. “But a girl…oh man. I’d love to have a little girl to do all that with and just spoil her. I’d make her feel special and always let her know how cherished she is, just like her mama.”

  Jessie smiled. “I like that for a name.”

  I looked at her funny. “Cherished?”

  She giggled. “No. Cherish.”

  “Hell no! My child is not going to have one of those hipster names. No way.”

  Jessie giggled as she reached under the covers and began stroking my dick. I looked down at her lips as she licked them.

  “I want you, Jessie, but my head is killing me,” I whispered.

  She bit down on her lower lip, and before I knew what was happening, she had me in her mouth and was moving up and down, making moans that vibrated my dick. I put my hands in her hair and tried like hell to hold off. The way she was moving her tongue was driving me nuts. She traced her finger across my ass, and that was it. I couldn’t hold back.

  “Jessie…baby, I’m going to come.”

  She started going faster, and she let out a low moan as I poured myself into her mouth. My eyes about rolled back into my head. It felt so fucking good.

  “Fucking hell, Jessie…ah…feels…so good.”

  She sat up and leaned back against her heels as she wiped her mouth and then smiled. “I think that was the best one yet, and I got all of it down!”

  She was so proud of herself that I couldn’t help but laugh. She winked at me before getting off the bed and making her way into the bathroom. It didn’t take long before I heard her throwing up. I flew up out of bed and ran into the bathroom to see her sitting on the floor.

  She looked up at me. “Oh god, I tried. I swallowed, but…it tastes so fucking gross. You need to eat kiwi!”

  I busted out laughing and sat down next to her. “I love you, Jessie, and what you just did felt fucking amazing, but I don’t want to feel good if it makes you feel sick.”

  She nodded and gave me a small smile. “I did a pretty good job though, didn’t I?”

  I smiled and pulled her onto my lap. “Yeah, baby. Yeah, you did.”

  “Scott…Scott! Snap out of it,” Lark said.

  I turned and looked at him.

  “I just got another call. We’re catching up to him. I need you to open the glove box.”

  I reached over and opened the glove box to see a handgun. Fuck.

  “Be careful. It’s loaded. Hang on to it, and if I tell you I need it, don’t waste a second. Do you hear me?”

  I slowly nodded my head as I heard Azurdee crying in the backseat.

  “Trey, will you please just pull over, and let’s talk about this, okay? Your driving is really making me sick, and—”

  “Jessie, I just need you to be quiet. Just be quiet. I need to think,” Trey said, his voice cracking.

  I sat there, looking down at my purse. Scott. Why didn’t I listen to him? What if we never see him again?

  I began crying, and Trey looked over at me.

  “Why are you crying?” he asked.

  I just stared at him. “Really? Are you really asking me that? Why are you kidnapping me?” I practically shouted.

  “I’m not. We belong together, Jessie. I knew it the moment I sank my fingers into your body. You belong to me.”

  Oh god, I feel sick. I let this man touch me. I let him kiss me and—

  I shook my head, and more tears began to fall. “No, we don’t, Trey. That was a mistake. I was lonely and scared. I wanted Scott that day, and I just used you to help me forget, but it didn’t work because I love him and only him. I’m having his child, Trey. This baby is his.”

  Trey looked at me and smiled. He went to put his hand on my stomach, and I knocked it away. He looked stunned and looked back at the road.

  “I can raise the baby just fine. We don’t even have to tell the baby about Scott. Our kid will never know about Scott.”

  I sat there, in shock. I couldn’t even talk. “Have you lost your mind? What in the hell makes you think I would ever do that?”

  I noticed Trey’s jaw tighten up. I need to get out of this car, and I need out fast.

  “Trey, please stop the car. I don’t want to go with you. I don’t love you.”

  “You do, Jessie. I know you do, deep down inside.”

  Jesus Christ. No wonder his fiancée left him at the altar. She was smart.

  “Trey, I don’t love you, and I’m so
sorry if I ever gave you the impression that I did. I thought we were two friends just trying to help each other through a hard time.”

  “You sat and slept on my lap that whole night. Even after you found out you were pregnant, you held on to me all night.” He smiled.

  I slowly shook my head and whispered, “No.”

  He nodded and let out a laugh. “Yes! Yes…you love me.”

  “No, I was scared, and it was in the middle of a damn storm, Trey! I thought you were my friend. You’re acting crazy.”

  He slammed his hand down on the steering wheel, causing me to jump. “No! Friends don’t fucking crawl onto their friends’ laps and hang on to them all night. They don’t kiss their friends good-bye, like you kissed me. You want me, Jessie. You’re just scared, but once you feel what it’s like to have me inside your body, you will see how much I love you. You will feel how much we love each other.”

  My heart began beating faster. Oh god. Please, God, don’t let this happen. The baby…

  “I’m not having sex with you,” I barely said as I began sobbing.

  Scott…please come get me. Please…find…me.

  Trey slowly turned and looked at me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward him. “Yes. You. Will. And you’re going to see how much you like it, you bitch. You dick-teased me for weeks, Jessie, with all your fucking friends bullshit. I thought I could be patient and let you realize on your own how that damn pussy isn’t meant for you. I’m meant for you.”

  I tried to pull away from him, but he was holding on to my arm so tight.

  “Trey…you’re hurting me!” I said.

  “Kiss me, Jessie. Lean over here and kiss me. Feel the love from my body as it goes into yours.”

  I tried to pull away harder. “No. Trey, please…oh god, please don’t do this. Why are you doing this? This is not the Trey I came to know and care about in Belize.”

  He let out a gruff laugh. “Care about? Care about? Is that what you call it, Jessie? You know…that other girl…what was her name? Chelsea. I bet if I called her right now, she’d fuck me again. Want to watch us, Jessie? It was pretty hot with her.”

  I sucked in a breath of air. “What?”

  I pushed my arm away from him, and he let it go. He threw his head back and laughed.

  “Yeah, I called her up and told her I was going to be hanging around for a few extra weeks. She came to Fredericksburg, and it didn’t take much to get the bitch up to my hotel room. She’s a kinky bitch, too.”

  I put my hand up to mouth. I felt like I was going to be sick from the way Trey was swerving.

  “What’s wrong, baby? The idea of me fucking Scott’s ex make you sick?” he said with a laugh.

  “No, you asshole. It’s your driving,” I said.

  He slammed on the brakes, and I felt the seat belt jam into my stomach.

  The baby!

  “Trey! I’m pregnant, and your driving is scaring me. Please…please just stop this craziness now.”

  He held up his hand as he gunned it. “We’re being followed.”

  What? “What? Why in the world would you think we are being—”

  Lark…Lark is still with Scott. Maybe they found out that Trey had forced me out of the hotel, and they figured out a way to track him.

  I tried to turn around, but Trey reached over and pushed me back. He swerved into the other lane, and I let out a scream as he whipped the car back into our lane.

  “Shit! Trey…oh god, please…I’m begging you to just pull over. Please think of the baby I’m carrying. This isn’t her fault. Please just pull over. You can just drop me off, and I promise, I won’t press charges or anything.”

  I began crying harder as he pressed on the gas. I glanced over to see that he was going over ninety miles an hour.

  “Shut up, Jessie! I need to concentrate. I think that’s your fucking boyfriend behind us.”

  My heart dropped to my stomach. Scott! I closed my eyes and just prayed to God that Trey would stop.

  “Oh, he thinks he can track me down and bully me…fuck no. You’re mine, and I’m not giving you up.”

  As I cried uncontrollably, all I kept thinking of was that this was my fault…again. I was going to lose the baby, and it was all because I had gotten on that damn plane, running away from my own fears.

  Trey turned and looked behind him. I turned, too, and I could see that Lark was driving…and I saw Scott. They were so close behind us.

  “Scott!” I called out. For some reason, I turned back around. “Trey!” I screamed.

  He was drifting into the other lane, and a truck was coming right toward us. Trey turned the steering wheel so fast and hard that we spun around as he lost control of the car. All I heard were horns and screeching tires, and then it felt like I was in the air.

  I closed my eyes, thinking of only two things—Scott and the baby.

  Lark slammed on the brakes as we watched Trey’s car flip over twice before it came to a stop up against another car. For a good fifteen seconds, I couldn’t move. I heard Azurdee scream out Jessie’s name, and I saw Lark get out of the car and start running.

  I snapped out of it and yelled for Azurdee to call 911. I jumped out of Lark’s truck and started running behind him. The car was in an upright position, and as I got closer, I saw Jessie.

  No…God, please no.

  Lark was trying to open up Jessie’s door as I heard someone behind me yelling not to move her and that an ambulance was on the way.

  Lark kept repeating, “Fuck,” over and over as he tried to open the door.

  I pushed him out of the way and tried. I took one look at the blood covering Jessie’s face, and I almost fell to the ground.

  “Jessie!” I screamed out as I tried harder to open the door.

  The next thing I knew, I was being pulled away from the car.

  “Let me go! That’s my fiancée, and she’s pregnant. Let me go!” I yelled out as I fought to get back to the door.

  Then, I saw firefighters everywhere. I tried harder to get out of the hold I was in. Lark stood in front of me, blocking me from seeing them cut out Jessie’s door.

  “Scott, you need to calm down, dude. Please…calm down,” Lark said as he grabbed my face to look at him. “Scott, they are going to arrest you if you hit a cop. Dude…please calm down.”

  I looked around, and two police officers were holding on to me.

  I shook my head and began sobbing. “I just want to be with her.”

  Then, I felt my legs going out. Lark reached out and grabbed me.

  “What hospital will they take her to?” Lark asked as he walked me over to a police car.

  “Please,” I whispered, “just let me be with her.”

  “Sir, please let the paramedics get to her first, and then you can go to her. Please just try to stay calm.”

  I slowly nodded my head as Azurdee walked up to me. She threw herself into my body, but I couldn’t even get the strength to hug her back. She was crying so hard. She pulled back and looked at me. Then, she turned and looked like she was going to pass out. Lark reached for her and held on to her as she cried harder.

  She kept saying, “Lark…please tell me she is okay. Is she okay?”

  As he looked me in the eyes, he began stroking her hair as he said, “Shh…it’s okay, honey…she’s going to be fine. I promise, she’ll be fine.”

  I watched as they removed Jessie from the car. Two paramedics were on Trey’s side of the car, but then they came around and started helping with Jessie.

  Is Trey awake? I am going to kill that motherfucker.

  I got up and started to make my way over when I felt someone grab on to my arm. I turned and looked at the police officer. “He kidnapped my fiancée, and she’s pregnant. I’m going to kill that motherfucker, and if you want to arrest me, go ahead, but I’m going to get to him even if I have to fight off ten of y’all.”

  He looked toward the car and then back at me. When he shook his head, I just stared at him.


  “I don’t think we will have to do that. The driver is…he’s dead, sir,” the officer said.

  All the air left my body at once. “What?” I snapped my head back toward the car and then back at the officer. “Jessie…is she…”

  “Sir, she is breathing, and they are about to get her on a stretcher and into an ambulance. You will be able to ride with her if you stay out of the way while the paramedics attend to her.”

  I nodded my head. “Yes, of course. Can you let them know she is pregnant and…” I felt tears burning my eyes as I looked back at the paramedics lifting her onto the stretcher. “I feel sick,” I whispered.

  The officer grabbed my arm and practically dragged me to the other side of his patrol car. I felt like I was about to throw up my spleen.

  “God, please don’t take the baby. Please don’t…please…”

  I leaned against the car and tried to stay calm, but the moment I heard Azurdee’s voice, I lost it and started crying.

  She grabbed on to me and hugged me. Now, it was her turn to comfort me. “Scott, she’s going to be okay because she is the strongest person I know. She’s going to be okay…Lark promised.”

  I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh when she said that. I pulled back and smiled. “So, because Lark promised, it makes it so?”

  She nodded and barely grinned. “He seems to know everything…so I’m going with it.”

  The officer called for me to follow him, and the next thing I knew, I was sitting next to Jessie in the ambulance. I held her hand and just stared at her.

  I looked up at one of the paramedics and whispered, “The baby?”

  She didn’t answer me, but she gave me a weak smile. I slowly looked back at Jessie and thought about Trey.

  The driver is…he’s dead, sir.

  “The driver, did he…instantly?”

  Fuck me. Why would he try to take her? What in the hell was he thinking?

  “I’m not sure, sir,” she said.

  I shook my head and held on to Jessie’s hand as the ambulance raced to the hospital. I closed my eyes and prayed like I’d never prayed before.

  The moment her hand moved through my hair, I felt that familiar feeling zip through my body. She’ll always have this effect on me. Even when we are eighty, I’ll still feel this way when she touches me.